Gideon Spanier: Britain gets a taste for TV binge viewing

Binge viewing sounds like a buzzphrase dreamed up by a TV marketing department. Netflix doesn’t like it, thinking binge has unhealthy connotations.

The US streaming site prefers to talk about marathon viewing. But one thing is clear: the way we watch TV is changing as we gorge ourselves on our favourite shows in an “on-demand” world.

The rise of Netflix and set-top boxes such as Sky+ means many of us can now watch many episodes in one sitting. Critical acclaim for high-quality American dramas such as Breaking Bad and House of Cards — both of which are shown by Netflix in Britain — has added to the hype.

“It is the future. People love watching shows back to back,” said Aaron Paul, star of Breaking Bad, at last weekend’s Baftas where it won best international show — the first time a Bafta has been given to a show without it being broadcast on a traditional TV channel.

There is evidence binge viewing is growing, although Netflix, Amazon and their satellite and cable rivals such as Sky and Virgin release limited data because the market is so competitive.

This week’s annual consumer media survey from consultants Deloitte found a third of 25 to 34-year-old Britons and almost as many in the 16 to 24 bracket prefer to watch several episodes of their favourite show in one sitting, rather than wait for a weekly broadcast.

Some 30% binge-view in a group against 19% of singletons, and women are keener than men. Not surprisingly, older people have been slower to embrace it. “It’s definitely a recent phenomenon,” says Matthew Guest, author of the Deloitte report.

“Since Netflix came into the UK and offered a quality streaming service, it has changed people’s attitudes to binge viewing.” Analysts reckon Netflix, which launched in the UK in 2012 after huge success in America, is the leading online player with 2.5 million British subscribers.

Sandvine, a research company for internet service providers, says Netflix is the second-biggest source of web traffic in the UK at peak evening times, accounting for 17.8% of traffic.

It has been possible to binge view old shows for years on DVD or video. Netflix was radical because it bypassed traditional broadcasters by commissioning its own online content with House of Cards, and then released the entire first series in one go.

Viewers could binge without waiting, — an idea that up-ends the concept of a traditional TV schedule. Others are copying Netflix. Last week, the BBC launched comedy series People Just Do Nothing in its entirety on BBC iPlayer before its TV broadcast. “The premiere will allow people to binge watch,” said executive producer Ash Atalla.

It is not just streaming services that are encouraging bingeing. Sky’s investment in connecting its set-top boxes to the internet and the launch of its Sky Store have led to a surge in customers downloading virtual box sets of complete series. Viewing of top titles such as 24 and Game of Thrones is up fourfold in a year.

In March, Game of Thrones series one to three became Sky’s “most downloaded box set ever” — a sign that a lot of binge viewing is of older programmes, not brand-new shows.

The truth is there is always going to be shortage of compelling new shows on which to binge even if the quality has been improving in an era when epic TV dramas have become the novels of our age. A series such as House of Cards remains a rarity on Netflix, whose library includes a lot of run-of-the-mill shows.

There are other caveats: live television is still robust. Even in British households with a personal video recorder such as Sky+, nearly 84% of TV viewed on a television set in 2013 was still watched live, according to Lindsey Clay of Thinkbox, the trade body for commercial television.

Twitter and other social media mean fans want to watch and discuss a new show as it airs and immediately afterwards.

Another caveat is bingeing may be more popular in London’s media “bubble” than elsewhere.

Deloitte found those earning more than £55,000 were twice as likely to binge-view as those earning less than £25,000, which makes sense given the need for high-speed broadband or a connected TV.

In the rush to embrace binge-viewing, public-service broadcasters such as the BBC must be mindful about not excluding poorer viewers.